Fixing it (Murphy siblings)
by Gemmasketch
Summary: What if Connor didn't die? What if the events of Dear Evan Hansen all the way up to Requiem were all a dream that Zoe had? What if Zoe relises that dream was a nightmare? A.k.a Connor tries
1. Chapter 1

Connor hated himself.

There was no denying it and he wouldn't even try to deny it if you paid him a million dollars. There were only three words he would use to describe himself: selfish, disappointing, and dangerous.

Connor knew he would eventually hurt Zoe. It terrified him whenever his anger spiked. He was her big brother. He had to protect her from himself.

This is what Connor told himself as a painfully familiar feeling swirled around in his gut. His urge to protect his little sister was way too much to handle when half of him screamed to get to her when something was wrong and the other half screamed that he would only make it worse. He rolled on to his side and squeezed his eyes shut. He curled in on himself and pressed his face into a pillow. Eventually, he gave in. It was 5:00 in the morning. It wouldn't hurt to check on Zoe if she was sleeping right?

 _Well that didn't make me sound like a creepy stalker._ Connor thought to himself.

Connor threw the pillow aside and rolled off his bed. The sooner he checked on Zoe to be sure she was okay the sooner he could go back to not sleeping. Throwing on a hoodie, Connor made his way down the hall. He stopped in front of Zoe's door. His eyes fell on the fist-sized dents in the wood. He shook his head. He couldn't deal with those memories this early in the morning. The teen forced himself to grip the door knob and turn it slowly. Cracking the door just enough to see Zoe's chest rising and falling, he peaked in.

 _Good. She's here and she's not dead._

Connor made a move to leave just as a pained hiccup left Zoe's lips. Connor stopped dead in his tracks. He fully opened the door to see Zoe's tear stained face. She was having a nightmare. There was no way Connor could leave now. Zoe needed her big brother. He walked over, looking like he was going to pass out, and sat on the other side of her bed.

To say he was hesitant was an understatement. When was the last time he had actually, properly, comforted Zoe? Okay, first he had to wake her up right? He reached out to shake her awake but thought against it. Waking up to her psychopath brother shaking her would just scare Zoe more. He also didn't trust himself enough to touch her so instead he got over her but not right in her face. His heart broke a little. Scratch that, it shattered into FREAKING PIECES. She looked terrible. Hair everywhere, lips quivering violently, breaths coming out in small sobs, eyes practically drowning in tears. He silently wondered if this is what she had looked like whenever they had a fight behind closed doors.

"Zoe…" He spoke in a quiet voice but not exactly a whisper.

She stirred a little. Her eyes opened a crack but she couldn't focus on things yet.

"Are you okay?" Connor asked as gently as he could.

He knew that was a stupid question, no one in this house had been okay in years, but he still had to ask didn't he? Zoe's eyes fluttered open and turned wide once she saw him. At first, Connor thought she was going to scream at him to get away from her but his assumption was immediately proved wrong when she broke into a smile and threw her arms around his neck.

"CONNOR!" She shouted, burying her head in the crook of his neck and breaking into tears.

Connor. Was. FROZEN.

His mind raced so fast he was sure his eyes were spinning around in their sockets like golf balls.

 _WTF?!_

 _Why is this happening?!_

 _Why is she hugging me!?_

 _Please help!_

His heart beat so loud and fast that Zoe could feel it too. She only tightened her grip on him.

"You're okay.." Zoe breathed.

She sounded so… relieved. Him being okay had somehow lifted a weight off of his little sisters shoulders. Small tears started to form in Connor's eyes. His arms itched to wrap around his little Zoe, to hold her in a gentil grasp that would just magically wash away all the bad things that had happened. For the first time in years, Connor allowed himself to hug Zoe. He laid his hands across her back, letting his broad shoulders curl around her seemingly tiny body, and resting his chin on top of her head. It wasn't a protective hug. It was too soft and hesitant to be protective but it was a hug.

"Y-yeah." Connor squeaked.

He silently cursed himself for stuttering. He was supposed to be the strong one right now.

"I'm… I'm here."

Neither of them knew how long they had been hugging but they didn't care. This one little moment allowed them to forget everything that had happened between the two of them and they were determined to make it last forever.

"Connor." Zoe spoke, not lifting her head.

"Yes?" Connor responded.

"Promise you'll never leave me."

"... I promise."

A/N: Go here to watch the animatic I made for this AU  /0U1_fQg3brQ


	2. Conner tries

"Hello?"

Connor and Zoe broke apart. Their parents were smiling in the doorway.

"Are you two done or should we come back at another time?" Larry asked.

Connor was about to ask them how long they had been standing there but Zoe cut him off.

"No. Connor was just leaving." Zoe said.

Connor turned to face her with a look of shock. Zoe didn't say anything. She just stared at him, waiting for him to get the memo. Her brothers hurt eyes quickly became narrow.

"Fine."

Connor got off of Zoe's bed and exited her room. Anger boiled inside him. SHE HUGGED HIM FOR THE FIRST TIME IN YEARS AND THEN WENT BACK TO TREATING HIM LIKE A PIECE OF CRAP TWO SECONDS LATER!? His vision blurred as tears threatened to spill. The teen felt a calming hand on his shoulder and whipped around to see his mother.

"What just happened?" Cynthia asked hopefully.

"Huh?"

"Between you and your sister." She clarified.

"Oh." He spoke.

Connor looked down in an attempt to hide his face. He didn't want Cynthia knowing he almost cried.

"Uh… I heard her crying?" That was partly true, "So… I went to check on her and… I think she was having a nightmare or some shit."

"Language Connor." His mother insisted.

Connor rolled his eyes and continued.

"Anyway, I woke her up to see what was wrong and she just started hugging me and crying." His face started to turn pink, "And I uh…. I hugged her back. Cuz'- you know- I couldn't just leave her an' stuff." His voice was barely a mumble as he spoke those last words.

"Oh, Connor! That's wonderful!" Cynthia shouted with glee, "I knew you cared about Zoe!"

Connor's blush deepened for more reasons then one.

"O-of course I care about her. She's my sister." He replied quickly.

The shorter woman looked as though she was about to cry tears of happiness.

"Do you two do this for eachother often? Does she know? Why didn't you ever tell us-?"

"No- mom- this was a one time thing. And...Zoe made it pretty obvious she wants it to stay that way…"

Connor fixed his gaze on the floor again. His mom's voice became quiet.

"I'm sorry." She began, "That might have been a little too much wishful thinking.

"It's fine. You just want us to get along again. I get it."

"I was just hoping this ment things could get better…"

Connor snuck a glance at his mother. She wasn't looking at him anymore. Her eyes were riddled with hurt and disappointment. Guilt welled up inside of Connor. It was his fault this family was a mess, his fault he and Zoe weren't friends anymore. Everything was just his fault.

"Look." Connor began, "I can't just magically fix everything but I'm gonna start trying. Okay?"

Cynthia meet his gaze with a bright smile.

"Yes, that's all I want!"

"No promises." He really didn't want her to get her hopes up, "But I will try."

"Perfect! Trying is perfect!"

They stood in silence for a few moments. Connor felt incredibly awkward and his mothers bright smile as well as her suddenly very positive attitude was not helping.

"... do we hug now or-?"

Cynthia was in his arms before he could finish that sentence. He returned the hug as he had last time thought this time with much more uncertainty. Two hugs in a row huh? Maybe things would get better.

"I'm so proud of you…" His mother weeped into his shoulder.

Connor tensed even more.

How was he so pushed to respond to that!?

'I know?' That would be a filthy lie.

'Okay?' That makes it sound like he doesn't care.

'You shouldn't be?' That would just make him sound like a dick.

"... Thanks…" he managed, "I'm gonna… go to bed."

He broke away from the hug, giving his mom a warm smile and small wave before walking off to his room.

Real smooth Connor.


	3. Why, Zoe

Breakfast was actually bearable.

Turns out his parents were so thrilled with the discovery that he might still be an actual human being that they gave him a break today.

There wasn't any talking, that would be too much of a risk when it came to not upsetting Connor, but the silence wasn't suffocating or painful.

The family managed to get through the morning without getting into a screaming match and soon the Murphy siblings were in a car and heading to school. That was when things started to inch closer to the edge. Neither of them wanted to talk about the hug or Zoe's dream because it would, inevitably, end in a fight. So they just sat in silence. Connor mentally thanked his past self for growing his hair out as he felt sweat drip down his neck. No one said anything until they arrived at school.

"So…" Connor tried, "Are we going to discuss this?"

"No." Zoe responded immediately, "And don't let yourself think it changes anything."

She got out of the car and started to walk away. Connor was in disbelief over his sisters behaviour.

"The fuck do you mean 'it doesn't change anything'!" Connor insisted, getting out of the car and speed walking after her.

"It means…" She turned to face him, "It doesn't- FUCKING- Change anything. You're still a dick. I still don't like you. And you still don't deserve my trust enough for me to tell you."

Zoe stormed off towards the school leaving Connor with a ribcage full of his shattered heart. He watched her through hurt eyes and an aching chest. What she said was true and he had already heard it a thousand times over but that didn't stop it from hurting. He made a mental note to take extra care staying away from people for the rest of the day. He didn't want to make this day worse by being an asshole to some innocent kid.

tears formed in Zoe's eyes. She wanted to run back to Connor. She wanted to throw her arms around him and take in his warmth. She wanted to tell him the she forgave him for everything and that they could go back to being friends; but she couldn't do any of that; not after everything he's done to her…. not after everything she's done to him. A single tear slipped down her cheek. She needed to do something, ANYTHING, to keep her mind off of her annoying, alive (oh thank god he was still alive), brother.

Connor tapped his foot a rapid pace as he waited for Zoe outside his car. She was supposed to be out by now so that he could take her home. His hands curled into fists around the fabric of his hoodie. He tried to slow his breathing in a attempt to calm himself down. Why was he so annoyed? He should be worried not mad. His phone buzzed in his pocket, snapping him out of his thoughts.

 _Zoe: I'm hanging out with some friends._

 _Zoe: Don't wait for me._

 _That would have been useful to know an hour ago!_

His grip tightened around him phone as the anger built up in his chest.

 _Breath._ He told himself.

Connor had decided that step one to 'trying' would be to control his anger. He leaned against the hard, metal, surface of his car and let his arms fall to his side. Taking a few deep breaths, he began to type his message.

 _Connor: Cool._

No, delete that.

 _Connor: Could have told me that sooner._

That's just asking for a fight.

 _Connor: when will you be home?_

That was okay. It let Zoe know he cared without seeming like he was attacking her. He sent the message and got into the car. A hesatent silence passed before his phone buzzed again.

 _Zoe: I should be back around 8:00 PM._

Connor felt his heart flutter a little. He had expected her to tell him to fuck off or that it was none of his business. Maybe things had changed… at least a little.

His mother met him at the door when he got back.

"How did it go?" She asked, trying not to sound like she expected results so soon, "Where's Zoe?"

"Hanging out with her friends. She said she'd be back by 8:00."

Cynthia smiled.

"Do you want to talk about your day?"

Connor winced. Whether it was a good day or not depended on who you were in the situation. It was a good day for people who had bumped into him or stared, because he didn't react, but on the other hand, he had so much built up anger that his entire body hurt.

"Touchy topic?" His mother asked.

"Little bit."

"Okay then… how about just a hug? Then you can go up to your room and unwind."

Connor let a small smile form on his lips as Cynthia wrapped her arms around his torso. The tall teen wrapped his bony limbs around her as well and rested his head on hers. The two Murphys found it amusing how tall Connor was compared to Cynthia but they kept it to themselves. They broke apart from the quick hug and shared a warm smile before Connor made his way up to his room and flopped down onto his bed. He rolled to face the ceiling and stared.

 _Now what?_

Usually, after school, he would crack open his weed stash and smoke his cares away; but that wouldn't be trying. His mother hated to find him high in his room.

 _Maybe I should get rid of it all together?... let's not go crazy._

He'd stop smoking for the heck of it but he'd keep the weed around… just in case he REALLY needed to calm himself down. Connor reached under his bed and felt around for one of his sketchbooks and pulled it out. He quickly flipped through it to make sure he hadn't filled it yet and opened to an empty page. He started doodling. It started with small, unimportant, things but slowly began to creep into more personal things and, before he knew it, the page was covered in him hugging Zoe, him playing catch with his dad, him talking to his mom about school. In the center of the mildly painful images his family, all smiling as one big unit. A drop of water fell on to the page, soaking the little sketched Connor and making it blurry. He rubbed his eyes quickly. He didn't have the right to feel sad about not having a perfect little family; especially since it's HIS fault they don't get along. He turned the page and started to draw a few random kids from school. He didn't know for sure, but he was pretty sure there names were Alana, Jared, and… Evan? Alana and him had been lab partners and Jared tormented him constantly but Evan… he didn't really know why he had decided to draw him. Maybe because he seemed like a nice guy? Connor stared at the drawing. They all looked so happy… he drew Zoe into it. Now the kids looked like a group of friends.

Friends…

Connor slowly sketched himself into the image. Alana had her hand on his arm, Jared was peeking over his shoulder like the small guy he was, and Connor had his arm around Evan with the nervous kid returning the gesture. He spent hours changing and refining it. It was perfect… a perfect little reality that would never come true…

Connor closed the sketchbook and looked at his phone.

8:30.

Zoe should be back by now…

Maybe he should give her the benefit of a doubt? Maybe she just ran into traffic; But his brother's intuition swirled around his stomach like fire. He got up and walked toward the front door.

"I'm going out!" He yelled before closing the door and getting into his car


	4. Tears Lots of Tears

Connor took out his phone and called Zoe.

Beep…

Beep…

Beep…

Beep…

Be-

"Hello?" Zoe's voice answered.

Connor was worried. Not because she took so long to answer, he was actually surprised she answered at all, but her voice was slurred and she didn't sound like she knew what was happening.

"Zoe, where are you?"

"I'm at a paaarty sssilly." She answered.

Connor couldn't believe what he was hearing. His little sister was drunk at a potentially unsupervised party.

"No, WHERE are you? Who's house are you in?"

"Uuuuuuuumm- IZZY! Yeah Izzzzzzzy." Zoe slurred.

"Okay, I'm coming to get you." Connor told her.

He jumped as he heard a happy giggle from the phone.

"Okay Connie."

Connor hung up immediately. His heart was beating way too fast. She sounded so…. happy. She was happy he was coming for her… what!? Connie… she hadn't called him that in years…

Focus Connor, He told himself.

He made a left and drove in to Isabella Garder's neighborhood. He felt weird rolling down the faintly familiar road. Isabelle had been Zoe's friend far before he started drifting away. He had been to a few of her birthday parties. They got along relatively well but, just like everyone else, she started distancing herself from him when his anger issues started to surface. Connor narrowed his eyes and scanned the houses until his eyes fell upon the shiny, rich, house of the Garder's. He rolled into the driveway and made his way to the front door. He gave a firm knock and waited. They were talking loudly in weird mix between English and gibberish but the moment he knocked everything went quiet. The door opened a crack and a clearly wasted girl with black hair took a peek at him.

"You're not a cop." She stated.

"Well spotted." He responded, "I'm here to pick up my sister, Zoe."

The kid swung her head around and yelled into the house.

"ZOZO! THERE'S A WEIRD SCRUFFY GUY WHO WANTS TO TAKE YOU HOME!"

"CONNIEEEEEE!" He heard Zoe's exited shriek.

The black haired girl turned to Connor once more.

"You can come in." She said before stumbling into the living room, leaving the door open for him.

Connor pushed passed the half-open door and followed the girl into a cozy room the absolutely REEKED of alcohol. He looked around at the sea of intoxicated teens until Zoe practically tackled him. She threw her arms around him with a happy giggle and nuzzled into his neck.

"Hi Connie." She said with glee.

"H-hi Zoe." He greeted back, feeling uncomfortable with how touchy she was, "It's time to go home."

"Awwwwww…. okay."

He slowly detached his sisters arms from around him and lead her out of the house and to the car. During the walk, Zoe almost tripped and Connor had to catch her.

"Jesus, Zoe, how much did you drink?" He asked her.

Why am I such a hypocrite? He asked himself.

He couldn't count how many times he had gotten dangerously drunk. Zoe hummed in thought.

"Two bottles." She slurred.

Connor sighed. How often did she do this? Did she start because of his bad choices? Did she use alcohol as a coping mechanism in the same way he used pot?

"Connieeeeee." Zoe whined for her big brother's attention.

He looked at her.

"Carry meeeee." She insisted.

"What?"

"Pleassssssse Connieeeeee."

"...no, we're almost to the car."

"Pleaaaaaaaasssssssseeee."

Connor sighed. Part of him really wanted to do as Zoe pleased; but the other part didn't trust himself to not drop her or something.

"I'll carry you to bed once we get home." He promised, hoping she would forget by the time they got there.

Zoe cheered like a four year old as Connor gently helped her into the car. He got in the driver seat and reached across her to buckle her seat belt. Zoe took this as the perfect opportunity to grab his arm. He tried to pull away but she was already cuddling him like a teddy bear. Connor sighed once more and buckled himself in before starting the car one-handed.

They began riding in silence. Connor started to lose himself in thought until Zoe's sniffling brought him back to reality. He looked over at her for a second. She was clutching his arm tightly and rocking herself as she sobbed into him.

"Zoe.."

"WHY DID YOU TRY TO LEAVE ME!?" She wailed, making Connor jump, "WHY DID YOU HAVE TO FOLLOW ME AROUND AS A GHOST!"

"Ghost?" He looked back at the road just long enough to stop the car as the light turned red.

"WHY DID YOU HAVE TO KILL YOURSELF!?"

Connor's eyes went wide and is face turned white. His stomach turned uncomfortably making him feel sick. It couldn't be…

Zoe's grip around him tightened.

"You can't die Connie… please… please don't die…"

Connor bit his lip and squinted his eyes; but his futile efforts to stop himself from crying failed miserably as tears flowed down his cheeks. He pulled the sobbing girl into his chest.

"Nonononononononono. I'm right here Zozo. I'm not dead. I promised I wouldn't leave remember? It's….. It's okay."

Zoe curled into Connors protective embrace. That's right. Protective. He was going to protect her.

They would have stayed hugging each other for hours if the light didn't turn green, signaling that Connor needed to drive again. Connor put one hand on the wheel and kept his other arm around Zoe who kept crying onto his shoulder. He rubbed her arm soothingly as her breathing slowly stopped coming out in small gasps. Zoe refused to let go of him even as he got out of the car. She tugged his sleeve and looked up at him.

"You said you'd carry me Connie." She smiled.

Connor's cheeks got a little pink and he started to sweat; he shrugged it off and hooked his arm under Zoe's legs, picking her up bridal style. She didn't squeal like an excited toddler like she would have if he had picked her up last time but she seemed happy. The 16 year old nuzzled into his neck again and closed her eyes as Connor walked to their house. He had a little trouble opening the door but he managed to get inside and kick off his shoes before climbing the stairs to Zoe's room. He set her down on her bed and tried to leave but the drunk girl wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Stay Connie. Please?" She stuck her bottom lip out and gave him her best puppy eyes. The teen stared at his younger sister for a few moments before giving in and collapsing on to the bed beside her. He knew that when Zoe woke up sober she would freak out if she saw him sleeping next to her but he was to emotionally exhausted to care. He let Zoe snuggle him and waited for sleep to take him.


	5. Murphy's in the bathroom

Zoe woke up feeling like absolute shit. She felt sick, tired, and her head pounded like a freaking drum. Thankfully, the warmth and beating of someone's heart in her ear made it a little better. Wait… what!? She looked up to find Connor's sleeping face.

WHAT THE HELL!?

How did she get home!? Why was Connor in her bed!? AND WHY THE FUCK WERE THEY SNUGGLING!?

I should kick him off. I should wake him up and yell at him. She told herself; but she didn't. Why wasn't she mad about this? She was so busy trying to figure out what she was feeling emotionally that she almost forgot about what she was feeling physically. The hungover teen felt bile rising in her throat. She immediately flung herself out of bed and sprinted to the bathroom. She thought she was going to hurl all over the place but, thankfully, the toilet seat was already up. She dove to it and just managed to catch all her puke. She was only heaving on her own for a moment before she felt someone move her hair out of her face.

"Thanks mom." She croaked.

"I'm flattered but, unfortunately, I'm not nearly as pretty as her." Connor's voice joked.

Zoe lifted her head. The caring person she had expected to be her mother was, instead, Connor. He gave her a sympathetic smile and Zoe felt a pang of guilt knowing that, if she wasn't disoriented and nauseous, she would have kicked him away and/or told him to fuck off. Fortunately for both of them, instead she just leaned over the toilet bowl and groaned. Connor rubbed her back and started to tie her hair into a ponytail. He got up and started searching through the medicine cabinet for a hangover cure. Zoe was both embarrassed and very confused. New, even stranger, questions swirled around her already stuffed and hazy brain. Why was Connor being so nice to her? After the fight they had he should be treating her worse. Connor kneeled down and offered Zoe the medicine. She snatched it from him with a glare.

"You're suddenly a descent sibling?" She snapped rhetorically.

She felt her chest tighten up as Connor flinched but didn't say anything. Zoe looked at the floor and took the medicine. That sat in silence for a few moments.

"... How did I get back from Isabella's house?" She asked.

"I went looking for you and drove you home." Connor replied.

"Lair." She sneered.

Connor just shrugged. It hurt that she didn't believe him but he didn't blame her.

"Why were you in my bed?"

Connor's face got a little pink. He cleared his throat.

"Turns out, you turn into a clingy four year old when you get drunk…"

Now it was Zoe's turn to blush.

"I didn't say anything did I?" She sputtered.

Connor ducked his head to hide his face and bit his lip. Having your little sister cry over the thought of your death hurt like hell, especially when you've thought of taking your own life more often than trying to fix things.

"What did I say?" Zoe demanded.

Connor took in a shaky breath.

"Nothing much." He mumbled, "It was mostly just… you yelling… that you didn't want me to die… and crying… and making me carry you to bed."

He chuckled a little at the last part.

Zoe went pale and looked away from her older brother, pulling her knee's to her chest.

"Go away."

"Zoe, What did I-"

"DON'T YOU FUCKING DARE ASK ME WHAT YOU DID! YOU KNOW DAMN WELL WHAT YOU DID!"

"RECENTLY! What did I do recently!?"

"I DON'T CARE IF YOU'VE BEEN ACTING LIKE A DECENT PERSON! THAT DOESN'T EXCUSE THE SHIT YOU PUT ME THROUGH!"

"I KNOW! BUT I'M TRYING DAMN IT!"

"WHY!? BECAUSE YOU SAW ME CRY!?

"NO!"

"THEN WH-"

"BECAUSE I KNOW YOU CARE NOW!"

Zoe fell silent, eyes wide. Connor was standing, facing the wall, his hands tugging at his hair.

"I THOUGHT NO ONE GAVE A SHIT SO I GAVE UP!" He turned to the side and leaned against the wall, "I can't do that now… not after how much you've cried over it… over me. And that was just a dream. I don't want to have to think about what it would do to you and mom if I actually died…"

The taller teen started shaking and choked back a sob. He slid down the wall until he was crouching on the floor in a fetal position and buried his face in his arms.

"Why can't you actually hate me? Why can't you want me dead? If I was gone I wouldn't have to keep hurting you."

"Shut up." Zoe hiccuped.

Connor raised his head and looked at her through his red eyes. Zoe was shaking, tears flowing down her face somewhat silently. Her breath was raged as she desperately tried to stop crying.

"S-shut up!"

She crawled over to Connor and grabbed a hold of his shirt before smashing her face into his chest.

"You can't kill yourself for me. Fuck it! You can't kill yourself at all! You aren't allowed to die!" She wailed.

Connor was sitting with his back against the wall as Zoe sobbed into his chest, practically sitting on his lap.

"I won't.." he tried, lifting her face so he could look the panicked teen in the eye, "I won't I promise. Giving up isn't an option anymore, remember?"

He tried to smile for her but he was too busy fighting back fresh tears. Thankfully, his words were enough. Zoe curled into Connor's lap, letting him hug her with his bony arms. She continued to clutch his shirt in her fists and they rocked back and forth like they had when they were kids.

They stayed rocking for a few minutes, trying too calm each other down. Eventually they stopped crying and just rested in their tangle of limbs, Connor leaning against the wall and giving Zoe the perfect angle to use his chest as a pillow.

"Zoe."

"Yeah?"

"I want to fix this."

"Me too."

"Alright… first order of business: figure out how to communicate without it ending in tears."

Zoe started to laugh loudly, making her whole body shake. Connor followed suit and soon, the Murphy siblings were a couple of broken teens laughing in each other's arms like nothing was wrong.

Cynthia couldn't believe what she was hearing. Her babies were laughing behind the bathroom door. It had been so long since she had heard Zoe laugh but Connor… she almost forgot what it sounded like. She tried not to cry as she turned the doorknob. What she saw when she walked in made her heart soar. The siblings looked up from their place on the bathroom floor but didn't stop giggling.

"Oh, hi mom." Zoe greeted.

"Don't mind us, we're just having a moment." Connor grinned, "Care to join us?"

They both reached out and arm to their mother. Cynthia's eyes welled up with tears as she smiled with joy.

"Of course." She accepted, walking over to them.

Connor and Zoe broke apart from each other in order to let their mom sit between them. She wrapped an arm around each of them and hugged them close. And, for the first time in years, both of them hugged back.


End file.
